Head Coach Ashley Manusos grew up playing softball – starting at the age of four. She went on to play for a Division II softball team at the University of Minnesota. She accepted coaching positions at the University of Dubuque and Cornell College before she deployed with the Washington National Guard while continuing to coach an elite youth softball team in Tacoma, Washington.
When she and her partner moved to Utah, she learned about the opening for the Park City softball team, a sport, she says, that doesn’t have a lot of traction here compared to surrounding states.
“Being a part of softball was something I was really looking into coming out there. But I had learned very quickly that it wasn't super predominant, which was different than some of the environments I had been in.”
The team started off slow this season – winning only one of its seven games. But Manusos says she’s laying the foundation for better results ahead.
“Our goal this year, or our motto I should say, was brick by brick. So obviously Rome wasn't built in a day. And we're going to build houses, we may build them slower some days than others. But if we can get 1% better overall, ultimately, that's the goal. So, we've had some struggles. The difference, I think, between us and our competitors is they have depth.”
Here in Park City, she says, softball is a second or even third sport for the team’s players, which makes it challenging for some of them to show up at practice and the games. Also having snow on the ground for five months a year, she says, limits their outdoor play, which impedes the team’s ability to be successful.
“Our competitors are outside practicing every day for the most part. And that's just not the luxury we have.”
For the first time, the Miners softball team will be involved in the Strikeout Cancer fundraiser.
“I, personally, have had many people in my family and friends my age, who have been diagnosed with cancer and or have died from cancer. So ultimately, it was a way for the girls to give back to the community,” she said.
The event will take place at Tuesday’s game at the high school softball field at 3:30 p.m. T-shirts and stickers will be for sale. $5 from every shirt and $1 from every sticker will be donated to the Huntsman Cancer Institute.
